QT help - Large number of fish

[MikeTR]

Well ich happened. I've been buying preconditioned fish at a premium and still managed to get it. So now I've got a large number of fish to quarantine and need some help figuring out a game plan and a method of attack. Stock list is below.

purple tang
2 clownfish
3 lyretail
gramma
melagris wrasse
ornatus wrasse
earlei wrasse
jordani wrasse
lineatus wrasse
lanceolatus wrasse
coris wrasse

 

[ThRoewer]

With this many fish you only have 2 realistic treatment options:

1. Hyposalinity (this would be my choice)

2. Chemotherapy: CP, formalin or copper. Due to the wrasses you can't use CP and formalin in long term baths is not a good idea either. That just leaves copper which is also not really good for fish and requires 2 daily tests and dosage level adjustments.

 

[snorvich]

Are you sure it is ich? If you did not quarantine them, they are not necessarily clean. If it is ich, see ThRoewer's post above. However, you could TTM them.

 

[MikeTR]

I've done hypo in the past.. have had some make it and some not make it. My concern in the short term is managing the ammonia levels as it's going to take a big tank and a lot of water changes.

 

[MikeTR]

Wasn't mentioned on the stock list, but not going to keep him either. First to show signs.


12921891_10153821164548880_832109187_o by Mike TR, on Flickr

 

[MikeTR]

Are you sure it is ich? If you did not quarantine them, they are not necessarily clean. If it is ich, see ThRoewer's post above. However, you could TTM them.

Well they were supposedly quarantined so either it wasn't done correctly or it came in on something else. Frags is about all I've added otherwise.

 

[ThRoewer]

Are you sure it is ich? If you did not quarantine them, they are not necessarily clean. If it is ich, see ThRoewer's post above. However, you could TTM them.

Yes, you need to be sure it is ich and not velvet or anything else.
Though TTM with this many fish is rather impractical as treatment. As a second layer it could work when transferring the fish to the holding tank one by one or in small batches.

I've done hypo in the past.. have had some make it and some not make it. My concern in the short term is managing the ammonia levels as it's going to take a big tank and a lot of water changes.

If you set up the QT clean with hypo your fish should be ich free within 2 weeks. To be on the safe side you can go 4 weeks before ramping up the salinity.
Ammonia will be an issue with every treatment (except TTM) and later during the holding period to leave the DT fallow for 3 months. You could use an ammonia binder at the beginning.

I would never trust that new fish are parasite free, premium service or not.
At a minimum you should give every new fish a formalin bath and put it through TTM.

 

[snorvich]

I would never trust that new fish are parasite free, premium service or not.
At a minimum you should give every new fish a formalin bath and put it through TTM.

Absolutely.

 

[MikeTR]

Yes, you need to be sure it is ich and not velvet or anything else.
Though TTM with this many fish is rather impractical as treatment. As a second layer it could work when transferring the fish to the holding tank one by one or in small batches.



If you set up the QT clean with hypo your fish should be ich free within 2 weeks. To be on the safe side you can go 4 weeks before ramping up the salinity.
Ammonia will be an issue with every treatment (except TTM) and later during the holding period to leave the DT fallow for 3 months. You could use an ammonia binder at the beginning.

I would never trust that new fish are parasite free, premium service or not.
At a minimum you should give every new fish a formalin bath and put it through TTM.

Well def learned my lesson. I posted a pic of the tang that shows the most symptoms. He cleared up for a couple days and it's now worse than before which is typical of the cycle.

Should I do regular large exchanges along with prime to deal with the ammonia?

 

[ThRoewer]

Looks like a clear cut case of ich.

If only this fish is actually sick (= showing spots or other severe symptoms), you could use TTM to treat it first and then place it into the holding tank. After that you can put the rest one by one through TTM before placing them into the holding tank.
The order in which the fish get treated should be depending on the severity of their symptoms.
The fallow countdown starts when the last fish is out of the DT.
This may take longer but would allow you to cycle the holding tank and slowly ramp up the bio load.

 

[cougaran]

Actually frags can carry in Ich just like anything else. There is also the possibility of inverts as well. Basically anything, even nets or other equipment from a live system. But, the odds are it was from where you got them from. Another vote for hypo salinity!